Improving Accessibility - Paving Trail Between Michaud Crescent and 53rd Avenue, Cycling Safety

The current gravel trail between 53rd Avenue and Michaud Crescent was once part of the former BC Electric Interurban Railway, which connected passengers and cargo from Vancouver to the Fraser Valley. This section is now a very popular walking and cycling path. Gravel paths can create accessibility changes. At its meeting on Monday, October 20th, Langley City Council awarded a tender to B.A. Blacktop Infrastructure Inc. for $413,481.36 (excluding GST) to pave that gravel trail and widen it from 2.5 metres to 3 metres. This will enhance accessibility.

Baldi Creek Trail

As part of the same contract, they will also shift the roadside barriers on Fraser Highway between 208th Street and Old Yale Road to improve walking and cycling safety. There will be no changes to the vehicle travel lanes. This will make it safer to connect to Derek Doubleday Arboretum and the Township’s multi-use path on Fraser Highway.

To oversee the project, ISL Engineering and Land Services Ltd. was awarded $30,205.00 (excluding GST) as part of the tender. A $62,000.00 contingency was set aside in case of unforeseen issues. If the contingency is not used, it will be placed back into the City’s reserves and be available for other projects.

Langley City Council’s Ottawa Advocacy Mission: Transit Funding, Reducing Gang Violence, and Infrastructure Funding

Over the past two days, I’ve been posting about Langley City Council’s second advocacy mission to Ottawa. Our first mission was in April 2024. You can read more about our advocacy efforts to update airport regulations, allowing for more housing options near Willowbrook Mall, and to transform Langley City into a Food Tech hub, supporting good jobs and a Canada-first supply chain, in previous posts. Today, I will focus on the remaining meeting we had while in Ottawa last week.

As you know, Canada has several regions, including BC, the Prairies, Ontario, Quebec, Atlantic, and the North. At the federal level, government MPs also have regional caucuses that bring regional matters to the attention of their fellow MPs, with the hope of prompting action. We met with Taleeb Noormohamed, who is Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation and is also the Chair of the Pacific Caucus. There were two regional matters that we want to bring to his attention.

Councillors Paul Albrecht, Rosemary Wallace, Leith White, and I talking with MP Noormohamed. Select the image to enlarge.

The first item we talked about was transit funding in Metro Vancouver. Langley City’s Official Community Plan is built around transit and providing people with travel choices; expanding transit service is critically important not just for Langley City, but for the whole region. During the meeting, MP Noormohamed noted a misalignment among local leaders, the province, and the federal government regarding transit funding. As a next step, he offered to bring local leaders, provincial government leaders, and Metro Vancouver MPs together in a room to drive alignment. Interestingly, I don’t believe this has ever happened before. I thought this was an excellent next step.

Many municipalities in Metro Vancouver, including Langley City and Township, received funding from the federal government to reduce gun crime and gang violence. Langley City and Township partnered with the Langley District to deliver a program to school students called Project Black Feather. This funding is coming to an end, and we have requested that the Pacific Caucus ask for the funding to be extended to continue supporting programs like Project Black Feather.

We also met with MP Scott Aitchison, who is the Shadow Critic for Housing for the Conservatives. He was also the former Mayor of Huntsville, Ontario. We talked about the need for the federal government to invest more in replacing aging water and sewer infrastructure. MP Aitchison believes that the federal government should be doing more to fund housing-enabling infrastructure, and he suggested that, as a next step, he come and visit Langley City to learn more. I will be working on making that happen.

Members of Langley City Council meeting with MP Scott Aitchison. Select the image to enlarge.

While in Ottawa, we of course met with our MP Tamara Jansen. We provided her with an update on our advocacy efforts and the folks we met with. We had a very good discussion about the need to update the airport regulations to allow more housing options near Willowbrook Mall and around other members of the Shadow Cabinet we should connect with.

A photo with MP Jansen after our meeting with her. Select the image to enlarge.

Over the course of two days, we attended seven meetings. While exhaulting, it was a productive two days, and we have a lot of follow-ups to make in the coming weeks and months based on the connections that we made to support our community.

Langley City Council’s Ottawa Advocacy Mission: A Canada-First Food Tech Hub

Over this week, I’ll be posting about Langley City Council’s second advocacy mission to Ottawa. Yesterday, I posted about our objective to work toward updating the airport regulations to allow more housing options near Willowbrook Mall. Today, I will talk about Food Tech.

A lot of technology goes into the produce, breads, snacks, and other food and beverage items that we use every day. Whether it is the automation of farming, science to create more nutritious grains, or packaging that helps keep products fresh, technology is embedded in the food supply chain.

Langley City is home to Kwantlen Polytechnic University’s School of Horticulture, and Brewing and Brewery Operations. These programs are highly regarded at home and abroad. Langley City is also home to Bimbo Canada’s BC bakery. If you’ve ever had a slice of bread or a roll in BC, you’ve likely had one made at the Bimbo Canada Langley City bakery. CKF Inc. is one of the largest food packaging producers in Canada. If you have ever purchased eggs, the package was made at their Langley City plant.

From packaging to food processing and production, Langley City is an informal Food Tech hub. In partnership with KPU, the City is working to create a more formal Food Tech hub. In the current political climate, there is a need for a Canada-first food supply chain. We can create economic opportunities and well-paying jobs right here in Langley City, benefiting the country with the help of the federal government, the province, KPU, and the private sector.

Councillors Paul Albrecht, Rosemary Wallace, Leith White, and I outside Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada. Select the image to enlarge.

In Ottawa, we met with senior staff at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada. A few key takeaways from these meetings were that the timing was right for creating a Canada-first food supply chain. We were also informed that traditionally, Food Tech has focused on the prairie provinces, though there is a growing understanding that BC and the Fraser Valley need to become a greater focus for the federal government. Our big ask was that federal government staff would come to the table as we work on our Food Tech strategy with KPU. I was pleased that after the meetings, there was interest among staff members at both federal ministries to come to the table.

Councillors Rosemary Wallace and Leith White walking into the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada building. Select the image to enlarge.

We also spoke with a senior policy advisor for the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food. The takeaway from that meeting is that Food Tech is split between the two ministries federally and also the Ministry of Agriculture and Food provincially. Moving the Food Tech hub concept forward will also require the support of the provincial government. Certainly, there are many moving pieces, but I left with the impression that there is a strong desire to support innovation in the food sector. This presents a good opportunity for Langley City if we can drive alignment among all the interested parties to grow our local economy.

Tomorrow, I will post about our other advocacy efforts while we were in Ottawa.

Langley City Council’s Ottawa Advocacy Mission: Enabling More Housing Near SkyTrain

In April 2024, Langley City Council had its first advocacy mission to Ottawa. Last week, we had our second advocacy mission. It was a whirlwind of meetings with Members of Parliament, political staff, and the federal civil service.

Councillors Paul Albrecht, Rosemary Wallace, Leith White, and I waiting for the train from the Ottawa airport. Select the image to enlarge.

Councillors Paul Albrecht, Rosemary Wallace, Leith White, and I represented Council on the mission.

We had two main matters that we want the federal government to assist us with, and some secondary matters.

Because of the Langley Regional Airport, we have a 150-foot or about 15-storey high limit for buildings in Langley City, except for a few parcels of property near Willowbrook Mall. These rules, called Airport Zoning Regulations, came into effect in the 1970s.

Councillors Paul Albrecht, Rosemary Wallace, Leith White, and I waiting in the Nav Canada lobby for our meeting. Select the image to enlarge.

Meeting with Nav Canada staff about airport safety. Select the image to enlarge.

With SkyTrain coming to town, we can expect to see more 15-storey concrete buildings around the Langley City stations. What is somewhat counterintuitive is that units in mid-rise buildings generally sell at a higher average price point than those in taller buildings. The reason is that a significant portion of a concrete building's cost is incurred below ground, and these costs are spread across fewer units in mid-rise buildings. To enable more affordable market-priced units and also more below-market-priced units, the City wants to allow taller buildings around a larger area near Willowbrook Mall. This requires the support of Nav Canada, which operates Canada's civil air navigation system, and Transport Canada.

We met with staff from Nav Canada and learned about their concerns. They also showed us their new approach for ensuring the safe operation of airports, which could permit us to move away from the current one-size-fits-all 150-foot height limit in the City. Any changes also require the support of Transport Canada.

Walking between meetings in Downtown Ottawa. Select the image to enlarge.

We met with the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transportation, MP Mike Kelloway. After showing him some maps and explaining what we were trying to achieve, he offered to provide us with help as we work through the process of hopefully having the federal government update the airport height limits in Langley City, which would allow more housing in the Willowbrook area. He wanted us to keep him cc’ed and in the loop.

A photo with MP Mike Kelloway after our meeting with him. Select the image to enlarge.

The next major matter we wanted the federal government’s support with is growing Langley City’s food tech sectors in partnership with KPU and the private sector. Many people are unaware that Langley City has some major food tech players in our community, including CKF for packaging and processors such as Bimbo Canada. We have an opportunity to expand the number of good-paying jobs in our community with this vision. I’ll post more about this tomorrow.